


Chaos Theory

by ShadowPhoenixRider



Category: Mass Effect
Genre: British!Shepard, Canon-Typical Violence, Drama, F!Shenko - Freeform, F/M, Mass Effect 3, Mass Effect AU, Mass Effect Big Bang 2016, Multipart fic, Reconciliation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-27
Updated: 2016-06-27
Packaged: 2018-07-15 07:24:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 12,294
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7213258
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShadowPhoenixRider/pseuds/ShadowPhoenixRider
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p><i>“Are you a fan of chaos theory, Kaidan?”</i><br/>“Only so I can fight it.”</p><p> </p><p>It only takes one action to change a story; even the choice between how to defend oneself. In this alternate retelling of Mass Effect 3, Akeelah Shepard finds herself trying to get a summit between the Council races together as the Reapers raze Earth, whilst sharing a ship with the man she still loves, but she is sure he still distrusts her. </p><p>Will their orbits realign, or are they destined to spin away for good?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Mars

The Reapers were invading. Earth was being destroyed and possibly the only hope against the incoming wave of machines was locked away in the Mars Prothean Archives.

And now Commander Akeelah Shepard was having to chase someone across the laboratory rooves for it, whilst a Mars dust storm was bearing down on them.

There was little time to reflect on the bitter irony of the situation, as Shepard vaulted a thick red ventilation pipe, light green eyes locked onto her prey whilst her armoured body hauled itself over the obstacles that appeared in her way.

Doctor Eva was her quarry, the cold Cerberus plant who moved with almost inhuman speed and grace, occasionally pausing to shoot at her pursuers or throw flash grenades in their path. The doctor turned sharply past a corner, firing warning shots to get the Commander and her two companions; Major Kaidan Alenko and Doctor Liara T’Soni, to fall back.

“Shepard!” Liara cried out, seeing the kinetic barriers around the woman flicker as the bullets clipped it.

“Take more than a few bullets to scare me!” Shepard growled, continuing her headlong charge, her shields flickering with each bullet absorbed. Eva realized her mistake, and for the first time seemed to fumble getting up.

“We’re gaining on her!” Kaidan’s voice sounded out in her helmet comm.

 _Don’t get cocky._ Shepard thought to herself, hauling herself over another waist-level wall.

“Overload?” She asked into the comm, as an idea came to mind.

“Can’t when we’re on the run!” He replied, grunting as he scaled his own obstacle.

“Liara?” Eva shot up a ladder, Shepard cursing as her foot missed a rung.

“She’s too far ahead!” The asari replied.

Fear pinched the base of Shepard’s heart; the only way to stop Eva now was to shoot her or grab her, and the soldier was too busy anticipating and avoiding attacks and obstacles to do either.

As Shepard scrambled up from the ladder, she saw the platform they were on abruptly ended and spread out, like a landing spot. And Eva was running to the edge.

“No!” Shepard cried out, putting on a burst of speed.

It was too late, as the doctor leapt beyond the lip of the platform, the sound of shuttle engines cutting through the Mars dust storm swallowing the station, and causing Shepard’s heart to plummet into her boots. She reached the platform edge the same time as a garish white shuttle rose up, the gold and black Cerberus diamond on its side, Eva staring triumphantly down at her pursuers from the open door as the vehicle began to pull away.

“James! Normandy! Anyone!” Shepard yelled frantically into her comms, even when she knew that the storm was enveloping all communications. No one would know of Eva’s escape until they were long gone. She felt Liara flare, trying to create a singularity to damage the shuttle, but it was too far out. “No…”

“Shepard…” Kaidan began, before he was interrupted by their comms crackling to life:

“I got this one!”

Another shuttle emerged from the dust coloured clouds, a dirty blue one, making a beeline for the white shuttle.

“James? What is he-?“ Shepard’s question was quickly answered as the Alliance shuttle slammed into the Cerberus one with a loud bang, cracking the fleeing shuttle’s windscreen and throwing it into a dive, the engine bursting into flames as it overloaded.

There was no time to celebrate, though, as the disabled shuttle was hurtling straight for them.

“Move!” Shepard yelled, diving to the side, her companions hitting the deck as the vehicle crashed down just behind them, cartwheeling over and spraying broken glass and debris everywhere before it settled upright with a defeated crunch, flames spreading over it.

After a moment of stillness, Akeelah clambered to her feet, going over to where Kaidan and Liara were. She naturally went to the biotic’s side, but he waved her off as he got to his feet, focusing on Liara, who was nursing a painful leg.

Knowing the sentinel was the best medic among them, Shepard turned her attention towards the Alliance shuttle, waving it down.

It landed like a giant, drunken bird; unsteadily and with a heavy, screeching crash, its bulk separating Shepard from her compatriots. The door opened, and the large framed marine that was Lieutenant James Vega stepped out, Shepard debating whether to thank him or kick his ass for the crazy stunt.

“Normandy’s en route.” James said instead. “They’ll be here soon.”

“Good.” Shepard breathed a sigh of relief. “First, we need to get back to that shuttle,” she said. “A Cerberus mole tried to escape with the data and I don’t think-“

A metallic bang interrupted her, and Shepard began to walk around the Alliance shuttle, concerned that the other shuttle was getting ready to explode. A second bang hurried her pace, James following her around the corner.

Liara was now upright, her arm slung over Kaidan’s shoulders, who had turned to stare at the now completely involved shuttle. A third bang sounded out and the shuttle door was forced clear off its hinges, causing Kaidan to back up a couple of steps as it skidded past him and off the edge.

And from the flames emerged Doctor Eva, the skin burnt away to reveal an equally scorched metal chassis, the hair now fused into one head piece and her eyes were now glowing, unnatural blue lights.

Suddenly Eva broke into a charge, straight at Kaidan and Liara. Shepard cried out, reaching for her pistol, but the sentinel moved first, swinging his body around to become the asari’s living shield, and effortlessly weaving a mnemonic, which caused his biotics to snare the synthetic in her tracks with a Stasis field.

Shepard didn’t wait for the Major’s yell, working on adrenaline and protective instinct alone, firing into Eva until she filled the thermal clip. James added his firepower to the mix, his rifle chattering furiously behind her until the Stasis released a limp, heavily dented body to the ground, all its lights out.

There was a brief moment of shocked silence before James said:

“That was Cerberus’s in?”

“She was a lot more convincing before the fire.” Liara replied. “And she- it nearly succeeded.”

“Shepard!” Joker’s voice came in over the comms, the Normandy’s engines breaking through the increasing noise of the dust storm. “We gotta go! We’ve got Reaper signatures in orbit!”

“Grab that thing and let’s get out of here!” Shepard barked, taking Liara from Kaidan as he slung the Eva bot over his shoulder, the Normandy sinking low through the rust coloured clouds towards their platform.

As the group climbed aboard, the shuttle limping on behind them (captained by James), Shepard paused a moment. She looked out at what was the once bustling research station on Mars, now derelict thanks to Cerberus, and about to be completely destroyed by the Reapers. She could just hear their cacophonous horns over the Normandy’s roar, and she caught glimpses of large black shadows between the clouds of dust, before the shuttle obscured them.

Shepard shook her head; her friend was hurt and needed help, not the Commander staring off into space.

“We were very lucky.” Liara said softly, as Shepard helped the asari along as the Normandy began to leave. “If Kaidan hadn’t have defended me-“

“Let’s not think about that.” Akeelah cut her off. “You’re both safe, and we’ve got the data. That’s all that matters.” She looked up towards the sentinel, who was waiting at the lift doors with the burnt synthetic over his shoulder, watching them inscrutably. The soldier tried to squash the voice of fear that wondered if Eva would suddenly spring alive and break his neck.

“Let me sit a moment, Shepard.” The asari said, gesturing to a pile of crates. “I’ll be alright after a rest.”

“You sure?” Shepard asked as she navigated to the crates, hearing the sounds of the shuttle being locked into place.

“Yes, thank you.” The Shadow Broker nodded, sitting down.

“Sealing airlock. Equalising interior and exterior atmospheres.” EDI’s voice sounded out, more like a VI than her AI status. Maybe that was why no-one had deactivated her.

Shepard decided to approach Kaidan, noting that he looked away when she looked at him. Her heart gave a heavy thump against her chest. _He still doesn’t trust me,_ she thought.

“You okay?” She asked when she got to him, watching the still synthetic cautiously.

“Yeah.” He replied. A pause. “I’m sorry, Shepard.”

“What for?”

“For thinking…” He shook his head, his brown eyes pained beneath his helmet visor. “I accused you of this.”

“I can…see why you would,” she spoke slowly, trying to bite back the urge to snap ‘that’s what have I been trying to tell you’ at him. “Kaidan, I-“

“Pressure equalized.” EDI announced. “It is now safe to remove your helmets.”

Akeelah blew a sharp breath of annoyance out of her nose at the interruption, but she let it be. They had more important things on their plate right now.

“Let’s get the good doctor analysed.” The Commander said. “We suit down later. EDI, where would you like her?”

“The AI Core will allow me to directly interface with her systems.” EDI replied, making the two male marines jump. “I have the necessary firewalls to prevent her from harming me.”

“Excellent. Joker, put us on route to the Citadel. Hopefully we’ll have a plan to stop the Reapers when we get there.” Shepard continued, turning to see James helping Liara up and over to them.

“Aye aye, Commander.” The pilot said.

Shepard stepped onto the now open elevator, joined by James, Kaidan and Liara, keying in the Crew Deck as their destination.

“So, you have an unshackled AI on your ship.” The Major commented.

“Long story, but the gist of it is that her name is EDI, and she’s a valuable part of my crew.” Shepard said coolly, prickling at his backhanded manner.

“I was a creation of Cerberus, Major.” EDI said. “But they have no control of me. Jeff released my shackles during the Collector attack on the Normandy, when the crew was abducted. I owe them no loyalty.”

“Please don’t remind me of that.” Joker said.

Kaidan said nothing, his face a mask, but his eyes held a far-away, thoughtful look.

“Shit, no wonder Cerberus could build a human synthetic, if they could make an AI.” James said. “You’re…friendly, right?”

“Yes, I believe the human phrase is that any friend of Shepard are friends of mine?”

“Close enough.” Shepard smiled as the elevator doors opened, striding out to the Med Bay. She turned when she felt her companions lagging behind, noticing Kaidan was taking a long look at his surroundings, wishing keenly that she could figure out what he was thinking. Was he building a further case against her? Despite his apology in the cargo bay, the soldier couldn’t help but feel that he hadn’t forgiven her. _The person that I loved…are you still in there, somewhere?_

“Major.” She called, attracting his attention. “Do you want to give me the synthetic? I can put her in EDI’s AI Core, and you can help Liara. You’re the only one of us with medical training, after all.”

“Alright.” The sentinel nodded, handing the mech over to her. It didn’t weigh as much as she was expecting, but she wondered if her implants were skewing her senses. Needless to say, she didn’t make comment on it; no need to shine the light on Cerberus even more.

Shepard entered the AI Core alone, glad EDI kept the door open so the others only needed to glance in to make sure everything was all right.

“Where do you want her?” The Commander asked.

“On the table, please.” EDI replied. “There is nothing else required, Shepard.”

“Alright.” Shepard set the synthetic down, pausing for a moment. “This was Legion’s table, wasn’t it? You know what happened to them?”

“I was unable to search news and the extranet whilst in Alliance custody. Jeff and I convinced the engineers that I was a particularly complex VI, and would only respond to his commands. Any use of my extranet link would have potentially given me away.” EDI explained. “I assume they returned to the Perseus Veil, to rejoin the rest of the geth.”

“Yeah…” Shepard took a furtive glance out to the Med Bay, but it seemed the others hadn’t overheard the conversation. Indeed, Kaidan and Liara were deep in one of their own, and James had left, probably to get out of his armour. Shepard wondered if they were talking about her, or the fact Liara had handed over the Commander’s body to Cerberus. Probably not, as she imagined there would be more shouting and upset, akin to Horizon if that were the case. She felt chills go down her spine just at the memory of how angry he was.

“Shepard,” EDI said, interrupting her thoughts, “Admiral Hackett is calling on the secondary QEC.”

“Okay.” Shepard nodded, striding out and ignoring the sudden halt of conversation. “Is it still in the same place as last time?”

“Yes, but changes have been made to the layout.” The AI said. “The laboratory has been removed, and where the armoury was is now a supply room, due to the room being unfinished. The armoury is now down in the cargo hold.”

“Make more sense there than where Cerberus put it.” Shepard said, casting a quick glance at the Med Bay to see Kaidan looking after her. As soon as their eyes met she looked away, embarrassed to have been caught staring. “You have any results from Eva yet?”

“Preliminary data, yes. I shall have more when we reach the Citadel.”

“Good.” Akeelah sighed. “Let’s just hope it was worth the hassle.”


	2. Citadel

“They’re a bunch of self-concerned jackasses, Shepard.” Councillor Udina spat, striding over to the desk in his office.

“How can they be so blind?” Akeelah sighed, running a hand through her short, light brown hair.

The meeting with the Council had been less than productive. Even with the Mars Prothean archive data showing plans for a weapon dubbed ‘the Crucible’, since Shepard and Liara couldn’t be sure what it did, the Council had done what they’d always done; washed their hands of it. And in that same motion, they threw humanity to the synthetic wolves without so much as a mildly heartfelt apology. It sourly reminded Shepard of something Ashley Williams had said on the first Normandy, and made the Commander regret her sacrifice on Virmire all the more.

“The Council. You saved them, and for what?” Udina echoed her thoughts. “Apologies that boil down to ‘maybe later’. If we don’t figure out something, ‘maybe later’ will be an epitaph on a mass grave of eleven billion.”

Shepard nodded. Though she and Udina had never really gotten along, for the first time she felt they were on the same wavelength.

“I’m a soldier,” she grumbled, “I should be out there doing something, not trying to play politics.”

“It’s too late to have regrets now, Commander.” Udina replied. “You’re in this game whether you like it or not. After all, I presume that is one of the reasons Anderson sent you off of Earth?”

“Yes, and I know why it’s important. I just get the feeling homeworlds are going to have to burn before they realize they might have to actually give a damn,” she said, folding her arms.

“And by then, it will be far too late.” The Councillor snorted.

It was at this point that the turian Councillor Sparatus entered the office. It turned out the Reapers were now stomping on Palaven’s lawn, and the once reliable stone in Shepard’s boot was now looking for a deal. How Akeelah had managed to keep from pointing out the irony in mocking tones, she didn’t know.

The turians would potentially aid humanity and the Crucible project, but their Primarch was on a moon of Palaven; Menae. If Shepard could go and extract him from the battlefield, she could negotiate with him for turian assistance at a summit with the other galactic races. Sparatus said he was sure the Commander appreciated the lead.

“Hah!” Shepard barked a humourless laugh after the Councillor had left. “Hard not to believe in the Reapers when they’re tearing up your own people, isn’t it!”

“Well, it’s a start.” Udina said, more diplomatically and giving Shepard a warning look. “I had a feeling he would come around. Stubborn to a fault, but rapidly convinced with solid evidence.”

“Hopefully in time.” She turned to the older man. “So, I have my mission. What will you be doing?”

“Humanity has created some goodwill in the galaxy, in no small part thanks to you.” Udina replied, sitting at his desk. “Now it’s time to cash in our chips. I’ll institute a draft in our colonies and order all civilian ships armed. Work on the Prothean device will be around the clock.” He looked up at her. “I’ll also talk to the others in the meantime. See if we can support this summit. Move things along.”

“Good.” Shepard nodded. “All sound plans, with what we have. Good luck, Councillor.”

“You too, Commander,” he said. “Before you go, I heard Major Alenko was on the Citadel?”

“Yes, he was part of my team when we left Earth. Why?”

“I wish to speak with him at the next earliest convenience.” The Human Councillor said. “Preferably after you come back with the Primarch.” Shepard could see from his look that he was holding information back, but it wasn’t going to be forthcoming anytime soon.

“Alright, I’ll let him know.” She replied. “I better get going, before there isn’t a Primarch left for me to find.”

“Good hunting, Shepard.”

* * *

 

 Shepard decided to do a quick rekkie of the Citadel before she returned to the Normandy, finding Doctor Chakwas who was eager to rejoin the Normandy, and managing to get Gabrielle and Donnelly out of some hot water regarding their previous tenure with Cerberus. They were only too happy to get back to work on the SR2.  She also found out Thane was in the hospital, his condition deteriorating, and he wished her the best in her efforts, saying he would pass any information onto her if she needed it.

Her travel around the Citadel had confirmed, however, that the Council had decided that the most appropriate tactic of choice when dealing with the Reaper invasion was to stick their heads in the sand. She could understand not frightening the general populace, but ignoring it completely was not going to work, especially with refugees already crowding the lower decks.

As Shepard passed the doors of Bay D24 into the docking tunnel, she was surprised to see someone waiting for her that made her heart crash into her sternum.

“Kaidan? Where are the others?” She asked.

“They went on ahead.” He replied, pushing off from the railing he was leaning on. “I see Doctor Chakwas is coming back to the Normandy.”

“Yeah.” Shepard nodded. “She has a good record for patching us up after our missions.”

“Yeah, definitely.” Kaidan agreed. “Be good to see her again.”

An awkward silence settled around them for a moment or two.

“Did you…get through to your family?” The Commander asked softly.

“Not yet. Most of the comm buoys are down, and those that aren’t are clogged,” he said, looking out into the distance.

“Where do you think they…” Shepard couldn’t get the words around the hard lump that was forming in her throat.

“My family…my parents live in Vancouver.” He murmured. “But Dad’s family owns an orchard in the BC interior. They were headed out there on a shuttle when…” He sighed. “I hope…I’m hoping Dad’s Alliance training has kept them safe. Must be killing them, not knowing where I am.”

“I bet.” Shepard nodded, similar thoughts swirling in her mind. _Please be safe, Amani. Please._ “I’m sorry, Kaidan, I know what they mean to you. I mean, if you want-“

“I…I won’t do any good on Earth.” The Major replied. “I knew, when the Reapers came down…we needed the Normandy, needed to be out here, to stop them. But…thank you, anyways.”

“No problem.” Shepard nodded, shifting her weight awkwardly. _We’re talking so normally, just like on the SR1. But still…_

“Look, Shepard,” Kaidan began, “there’s another reason I’m here.”

“Yeah?” She managed, the lump reforming in her throat again.

“We need to talk. Properly, I mean. Sit down in private and really talk about…everything, I guess.”

Shepard sighed.

“Is this your way of saying you still don’t trust me?” The soldier asked, suddenly weary. _This is going to hang over our heads for the rest of our lives, isn’t it?_

Kaidan seemed surprisingly startled by her comment, his eyes wide and his face unsure.

“No! I mean- I don’t…I don’t _know,_ Shepard,” he said, and she noticed the biotic sounded upset, but not at her, before he sucked in a breath and tried again. “I do trust you, Shepard. I do.”

“Being with you on Mars…It was like nothing had changed. Like we were back on the first Normandy, chasing Saren. Yet I still blamed you, when…” He glanced down for a moment, before he looked back at her, eyes serious. “You sent the formula for the seeker swarms to the Alliance. You replied to my message…” He swallowed hard. “Look, I still want to talk about this. About us. But I need you to know I’m not doubting you again. I’ve got your back.”

“Good to know.” A small smile managed to make its way onto Shepard’s lips. “Thank you, Kaidan. I’ll find us some time for us to talk, definitely.” She nodded. “Oh, that reminds me! Udina wanted to speak with you after the Menae mission.”

Kaidan’s brows furrowed.

“Udina? Why would he want to talk to me?”

“Don’t know, he was cagey about it.” Akeelah replied, running a hand through her hair. “Considering he was okay with you contacting him after the mission, so it’s not urgent, I can’t think of what it might be.”

“Might be interested in my students.” The sentinel mused. When she looked at him blankly, he chuckled and said; “Anderson asked me to take over a spec ops program. First Special Operations, Biotics Division. We were recruiting the most talented human biotics from across the galaxy.”

“What’s the focus?” She asked, gesturing for the Major to walk with her.

“Covert, high risk missions.” He replied, easily falling into step with her as they walked up the docking tube. “I turned it down at first. I mean, teaching? I prefer to get my hands dirty.”

Shepard chuckled as they stepped into the airlock.

“Anderson can be pretty persuasive.” She grinned. Kaidan chuckled again, a sound that caused her heart to flutter, despite everything.

“Yeah, a bit of a hard ass, but you can’t argue with his kind of experience. Wouldn’t take no, said it had to be me.”

“With your history, you’re the perfect choice.”

He glanced at her with an unidentifiable look on his face.

“True.” Kaidan tilted his head thoughtfully. “Human biotics are…We’re different, freaks even. Most people in the galaxy still see us that way. But accepting it, embracing it, can be the difference between success and sitting at home in your PJs taking red sand.”

A chill went through Shepard’s body; that example was too specific for chance. She’d seen enough of the drug and its effects during her gang days on Earth, and the thought that even Kaidan had had a brush with it at his lowest point made her feel ill. His words before Ilos came back to her once again. _You make me feel…human._

The urge to grab his hand was stronger than ever, and she had to force down the emotions, clasping her hands behind her back. _Not the time, Shepard._

“Well, I’m glad to hear your doing well, anyway,” she said. “You deserve it.”

“Thanks.” Kaidan smiled, looking at her. “Hey, Shepard-“

The airlock doors opened then, interrupting what he was going to say in a hubbub of noise, from the crew anxiously talking to one another and systems being checked and other mechanical things.

“I’ll talk to you later, Major.” Shepard said, her Commander mantle pulled around her shoulders once more. He nodded to her as she marched onto the ship, turning towards the cockpit. “Joker! Did you get my message?”

“Yep! To Menae, right?” The pilot replied, looking over his shoulder.

“That’s correct, Flight Lieutenant.” She replied, turning around and raising her voice to a bark full of authority that carried through the CIC. “Let’s get going on the double, people! We have a Primarch to rescue!”


	3. Menae

“Holy shit…They’re getting decimated.” James spoke in the newly repaired shuttle, as it flew fast through the atmosphere of Menae. They were looking at the shuttle’s mission briefing screens, which displayed images of the moon and the Reapers stomping across it, in scenes that could have easily been on Earth, had there not been similar orange fires on Palaven in the background.

“That doesn’t look good.” Kaidan murmured in agreement from his seat, his fingers touching in almost a meditative pose; probably the reason he seemed so calm.

“One of the best militaries in the galaxy, and the Reapers are crushing them like paper.” Shepard said. She knew the fight against the synthetics would be bad, but like this? This was awful.

“All the more reason not to linger.” Liara pointed out from beside Kaidan. “The sooner we find Primarch Fedorian and leave with him, the sooner you chair the summit, and the sooner we can form a plan against them. Hopefully.”

“Coming in hot, Commander!” Shuttle pilot Steve Cortez called out. “Got hostiles on the LZ!”

“We’ll deal with them.” Shepard replied, unholstering her rifle and getting into position by the door, flanked by James and Kaidan. She felt the hairs on her arms stand up as the sentinel’s biotics activated, and she tried to push away the memories of how good his biotics felt on her bare skin. It certainly wasn’t the time for thoughts like that in the middle of a warzone.

“Open the door, Cortez!” She ordered, and as the Kodiak slowed, the hydraulic seals released and the door slid away to reveal the battlefield. It was a barren field of dark grey black rocks and gravel, pitted with craters and twisted, broken bodies and machinery, both turian and Reaper, with the occasional orange glow of fire from severed fuel lines in crashed fighters.

As they approached the landing zone, they were immediately fired upon by cannibals, and Shepard yelled;

“Light ‘em up!”

She and James brought their rifles to bear, mowing down any Reaper creature foolish enough to reveal itself, whilst Kaidan pulled the more intelligent ones into the line of fire, or hurled them into debris and other sharp objects lying around the battlefield. There wasn’t room for Liara to help, but they managed to clear out the pack enough for the shuttle to land and let them disembark.

Thanks to a turian soldier, they found their way to the command post and General Corinthus, who informed them of the bad news; Primarch Fedorian was dead, his shuttle shot down by Reaper forces whilst attempting to leave.

Before Shepard could try to pull her hair out in frustration, Liara quickly informed her of the clear line of succession the turians had for their Primarchs, and that a quick question to Palaven Command would give them the answer. That is, if they repaired a broken comm tower that was swarming with husks.

“Why do I get the feeling everything is being needlessly difficult?” Akeelah cursed as she shot a husk whirling around in Liara’s singularity.

“You were expecting this mission to be easy?” The asari asked, shooting at a husk that was making a beeline towards Kaidan, as he worked on the tower with single-minded concentration.

“No, I expected the Reapers to be a challenge, but not for us to be forced to jump through hoops whilst on fire to get anywhere.” Shepard replied, dropping into cover beside James.

“Hey Commander, link omnitools a sec,” he said, his own coming to life around his arm.

“Lieutenant, we’re a bit busy right now.” She winced as bullets thudded into the rock they were using as cover.

“It’ll only take a second.” The marine insisted.

The Commander gave a half snort, half sigh, activating her own omnitool and holding it out for him. True to his Vega’s word, it only took a second, and when she looked at it, she saw the words ‘Omniblade plans installed and ready to use. Would you like operating instructions?’ on the orange screen.

“Omniblade?”

“Try it out, Shepard.” James grinned.

Akeelah flicked her wrist as the instructions told her to, and a blade formed within the orange hologram, swinging out and locking into position when it was ready. It was medium length, but with a vicious, sharp curve, and despite it looking like an extension to the omnitool, Shepard could feel a weight to her arm, the combination of the blade and the counterbalance that wrapped around her arm, like a vambrace.

“We’ve got another wave of husks incoming, Commander.” Liara announced.

“Give me another couple of minutes!” Kaidan spoke into his comm.

“Alright, Major.” Shepard said. “Just for a couple more minutes, folks!” She yelled, before grinning. “Time to see what this can do.”

What it could do, it turned out, was ruthlessly and efficiently cut husks into fleshy ribbons. Its thin frame made it look brittle, but when it bit through a husk from right shoulder to left hip without a single complaint, Shepard knew she had a powerful weapon in her arsenal.

The sentinel soon had the comm fixed, however, and Corinthus radioed for them to return to the command post, which allowed Shepard to gleefully dispatch any husks foolish enough to attack them, earning revulsion from Liara, a wide grin from James, and a thoughtful look from Kaidan, as if he was debating whether to get one himself.

“Heard from Palaven Command.” Corinthus announced when they returned. “General Victus is the next Primarch.”

“Victus?” Liara spoke. “His name’s crossed my desk.”

“He’s here, but deeper into the frontlines.” Corinthus explained. “Frontlines the Reapers are changing every couple of hours. You’ll need someone who knows this place to find him, and I’ve no one to spare.”

“I’m on it, Shepard.” Came a voice from behind the Commander and her team. “I’ll find you the Primarch.”

Akeelah turned to see a familiar scarred turian, his blue eyes bright even as his clan paint was dulled.

“Garrus!” She cried, clasping his hand in a grateful handshake. “You’re alive.”

The turian’s mandibles flicked with amusement.

“I’m tough to kill, Shepard. You know that.” He replied, earning a playful punch on the arm.

“Good to see you again, anyhow. I thought you’d be on Palaven.” Shepard continued.

“If we lose this moon, we lose Palaven.” Garrus explained. “I’m the closest damn thing we have to an expert on Reaper forces, so I’m…advising.”

“I see.” Shepard nodded, before turning to her ground crew, gesturing to James first. “James, this is Garrus Vakarian. He helped me stop the Collectors, and he’s a hell of a soldier.”

“Lieutenant.” Garrus replied, shaking the burly marine’s hand. “Good to see you too, Liara.”

“Good to see you in one piece, Garrus.” Liara smiled.

Garrus then turned to Kaidan, who was eying the turian’s scar thoughtfully, though the rest of his face gave nothing anyway.

“I’m pretty sure Kaidan needs no introduction either,” the Commander said. “Other than the fact he’s a Major now.”

Garrus’s mandibles flapped.

“Major? Damn, Kaidan, why aren’t you in charge? Could have saved us a suicide mission.” He ignored Shepard’s unimpressed huff.

“Shepard has more expertise than me.” The sentinel replied diplomatically, and the soldier could have sworn there was a smile playing on his lips. “It’s good to see you again, Garrus.”

“You too, Major.” Garrus nodded, shaking hands with him. “And that we’re on the same side again. So to speak.”

Shepard shot the turian a warning look, but Kaidan didn’t seem too affronted, other than slightly furrowed brows and down turned lips.

“Yeah, me too,” he said softly.

It was then Joker’s voice came over the comm.

“Commander! Shepard, come in.”

“What is it Joker?” She asked, pressing her fingers to her ear.

“We’ve got a situation on the Normandy, Commander.” He explained. “It’s like she’s possessed or something; shutting down systems, powering up weapons. I can’t find the source.”

“Damnit.” Akeelah cursed. _What, are we not tired of throwing every problem under the sun at me yet?_

“What’s the matter, Shepard?” Liara asked, coming to her side.

“Joker’s having problems.” The soldier explained. “I need the Normandy; we may need to bug out.”

“Should I go and take a look?” The asari asked.

“Do it.” Shepard said. After an affirmative nod, Liara jogged off towards their previous LZ, leaving the Commander to address the rest of her men. “Garrus, do you know where Victus is?”

“Yes, I was fighting alongside him this morning. He’s past this command post, deeper into the frontlines.”

“Think you could get us there?” Shepard asked.

“Are you kidding?” Garrus replied, grinning widely. “I’m right behind you. Or in front of you, in this sense.”

The path towards Victus’s camp was one beset by Reapers, husks leaping out in ambushes, flanked by cannibals, and now joined by strange, electronically voiced creatures that looked eerily like turians. Garrus’s mandibles fluttered when they felled the first few.

“Spirits.” He murmured softly when they took a closer look at them. “They _are_ turians.”

“Any race is fair game.” Kaidan murmured. “Hate to see what a krogan looks like after they’re done with them.”

“Don’t give those machines any ideas.” Shepard spoke, glancing at James and noticing he seemed to be a bit quiet. She figured he was slowly realizing the true horror behind the Reaper forces they were fighting through. “Let’s keep moving.”

As they continued along the path, studded by broken barricades and dodging a crashing turian fighter that came too close for comfort, James finally spoke up again.

“So, Shepard…You really think this summit is going to work? I mean, the asari? Salarians? Where’s the krogan and batarians? Where’s the meat?”

Shepard sighed.

“It’s not that easy, James.”

“Batarians were hit first by the Reapers.” Kaidan explained. “Those cannibals are them. There’s not much of them left now.”

“And the krogan have never forgiven us for the genophage.” Garrus added.

“Right. Turians sterilized them.” The younger marine said.

“Salarians came up with it.” Garrus pointed out.

“And the krogan hate them both for it.” Shepard said.

“So they won’t be joining us.” Kaidan concluded.

“Too bad.” James shrugged. “I fought with a krogan. They’re tough sons of bitches.”

“We know that well.” Garrus chuckled. “Wonder what Grunt and Wrex are up to now?”

“Grunt?” Kaidan spoke.

“Grunt’s probably having a field day.” Shepard replied, ignoring the Major. “Wrex…I dunno. Hopefully they’re kicking ass, wherever they are.”

They found Victus’s camp, and that he and his men were precariously balanced on top of dented, temporary shelters, defending against husks, cannibals, marauders (the name for the turian Reapers Kaidan had coined), and a giant monster that could only be the offspring of a turian and krogan.

It had a turian head on a long, spindly looking neck, which was connected to a mountain of muscles with inside out ribs masquerading as back spines, reinforced with huge, heavy metal claws capable of damaging solid titanium. Its belly was also armoured, presenting the group with the reason none of Victus’s men were on the ground and explaining where the giant dents in the prefabs had come from.

“Holy shit!” James cried out when it stomped into view on all fours, swinging its head around to face them at his exclamation.

“Is…is that a turian and a krogan?” Kaidan exclaimed.

“It is!” Shepard yelled as it crouched itself down. “Scatter!”

They just managed to get out of the way as the beast charged at them, shaking the ground under its pounding limbs, yet they were beset by its less formidable compatriots, trying to corner them so the turian/krogan Reaper could flatten them.

“You just had to open your mouth, Alenko!” Garrus yelled, trying to scramble to a higher perch, out of the way of reaching husks.

“I didn’t think they’d combine them!” The biotic retorted, shorting out a marauder’s shields before sending it scuttling behind cover with a hail of gunfire.

“Keep your focus on the others!” Shepard ordered, launching herself over a rock and slashing a cannibal as she moved. “I’ll keep the brute off you!”

“Commander?” Kaidan began, but he was interrupted when Shepard hurled a rock at the creature’s backside as it eyed James, yelling loudly:

“Hey, ugly! How about you fight someone your own size! Me!”

The brute roared and charged at her, Shepard rolling out of the way just in time. It skidded to a halt just before a prefab, roaring as the turian soldiers on it fired down from above. The Commander shot a few rounds into its exposed rear, making sure its attention was firmly fixed on her.

“Call that a charge? A beached hanar could do better than you!” She taunted, dodging another charge, grinning as it rounded on her again. “I could do this all day, Reaper freak! Come at me!”

It bellowed furiously at her and galloped over, Shepard sidestepping at the last moment…and catching her foot in a knot of twisted metal. She gave a cry as she tumbled over, catching the end of the brute’s attack as she fell to the ground. The creature rounded on her, and Shepard scrambled back on her hands and feet to avoid the gigantic claws from pounding her into the rocks, struggling to get up and away.

Suddenly, biotics coalesced around the creature’s head, and it howled with pain, pausing long enough for Shepard to activate her omniblade and slash through its long neck, severing its head and causing the body to collapse like a giant sack of potatoes.

As Akeelah stood up, she looked over her shoulder to see Kaidan jogging over, body alight with biotics that turned his gentle brown irises a fierce azure blue.

“Shepard, are you alright?” He asked breathlessly, eyes flicking over her.

“Yeah, just tripped,” she said, brushing the dirt from her black armour. “Thanks for the save, though.”

A warmth flashed through his eyes, and she could have sworn that there was a smile pulling at his lips.

“You’re welcome. Please don’t scare me like that again,” he said, and something to his tone made her heart jump in her chest, before Victus was walking over, eying Kaidan a second too long for it to be admiration.

“Commander Shepard,” he said. “I can’t wait to find out what brings you out here.” He turned to Garrus as the sniper jogged over. “Vakarian, where did you go?”

“Heavy Reaper unit on the right flank. I believe your exact words were: ‘Get that thing the hell off my men’.” Garrus replied.

“Appreciate it.” Victus said, a ghost of a turian grin on his face.

“General,” Shepard began, “I know this a lot to ask of you, but you’re needed off planet immediately to chair a summit, and represent your people in the fight against the Reapers.”

“Fedorian was killed.” Garrus explained. “You’re the new Primarch.”

Victus’s mandibles fluttered, his yellow eyes wide.

“I…I’m the Primarch of Palaven? Negotiating for the turian hierarchy?”

“Yes.” Shepard nodded. “Like I am for humanity.”

“I’ve spent more whole life in the military. I’m not diplomat. I hate diplomats.” Victus said.

A smile pulled at the Commander’s lips.

“I can understand that. But war is your CV,” he gave her an odd look, “sorry, resume, and at a time like this, we need leaders who know war, who’ve been through that hell.”

“I like that. You’re right.” Victus said. “Give me a moment to say goodbye to my men first.”

“Of course.” She nodded, stepping away. She noticed Kaidan and James were talking together, occasionally glancing at her, but mostly at the turians, who had been eying Kaidan in a less than friendly manner and whispering amongst themselves, before Victus started to talking to them. James seemed angry, but Kaidan was more…resigned? Shepard was taken from her thoughts by Garrus coming over to her.

“Look at this,” he said, nodding towards a Reaper dreadnaught in the distance, firing its red laser at anything that moved beneath it. “And they want my opinion on how to stop it?” He sighed. “Failed C-Sec officer, vigilante…and I’m their expert advisor?” A pause. “Think you can win this, Shepard?”

It was Akeelah’s time to sigh.

“I don’t know, but I’m going to give it my best shot.”

“I’m damn sure no-one else can do it.” Garrus said. “For whatever it’s worth, I’m with you.”

Shepard grinned widely, grabbing the turian’s hand.

“Welcome aboard, Garrus. Couldn’t imagine meeting the Reapers without you.” Movement from her peripheral vision made her look at the approaching General Victus. “Are you ready, Primarch Victus?”

The turian looked mildly abashed by the title.

“I am, but I need to let you know that the turian fleets cannot help humanity if we do not get Palaven some relief first.”

“That’s a tall order.” Shepard said. “But I have a feeling you have a solution.”

“I do.” Victus nodded. “We need the krogan.”


	4. Starboard Observation

“But Madame Councillor, some of these issues are hundreds of years old. It’s time to let go.” Shepard insisted, but to no avail. The asari Councillor was convinced that the addition of the krogan to the summit made it impossible to get a resolution, and so the asari were going to pull out, leaving the rest of the races to it.

The Commander had enough restraint to hold her tongue until the vid comm transmission had ended before she let out a frustrated groan.

“Not even gonna try and help. At least the salarians are gonna try! Bloody hell…”

As she marched out of the vid comm room in a huff, she almost collided with Kaidan.

“Shit, sorry Kaidan.” Shepard stuttered, heat rising in her face. “I-I wasn’t paying attention.”

“It’s alright, Shepard.” The sentinel replied, his brown eyes earnest. He glanced to the room she’d just come out from. “Council frustrating you?”

Her eyebrows rose.

“That easy to tell?” She sighed. “Yeah. The asari heard the krogan were coming to the summit, and have decided that diplomacy is too hard and pulled out. So, it’s just me, Victus, the salarians and the krogan left.”

Kaidan’s brows furrowed.

“Seems counterintuitive.”

“Yeah, that’s what I thought.” Shepard sighed, running a hand through her short brown hair. “I would have thought stuff like this would be the perfect time to put aside grudges for the greater good.”

“Hmm. Race as long-sighted as the asari should be agreeing with you and trying to help. Not pretending it isn’t happening,” he said.

“I don’t know what they’re doing.” Shepard shrugged. “I just hope they realize they need to do something soon, before it’s too late.” She glanced at him, wringing her hands. “A-Anyway, I bet you need to talk to Councillor Udina. I should let you get on…”

“Wait, before you go Shepard,” Kaidan said, “after my meeting with Udina, I’ll be in the Starboard Observation Deck, if you’ve got time to talk.”

She blinked, taking a couple of seconds to absorb the information.

“Yeah, yeah that’s a good idea.” She smiled. “I’ll send you a message, let you know I’m coming.”

“Sure.”  Kaidan nodded. “I’ll see you around-“

At that moment, the lights flickered, some turning off completely, and some computer screens in the War Room suddenly went blank. A murmur of confusion began, before Joker’s anxious voice sounded out.

“Commander! EDI just went offline!”

Shepard’s heart chilled.

“What do you mean, ‘offline’?” She demanded, already marching her way to the CIC, Kaidan following in her wake.

“I don’t know!” The pilot cried, clearly trying not to panic. “She’s not responding, and I can’t access the AI Core diagnostics.”

“I’m on my way now.” Shepard spoke, hurrying through the checkpoint with just a nod.

“Commander, comm systems are going haywire!” Traynor said from her position. “It’s all centred on Deck Three.”

“I’m headed to the AI Core.” Akeelah said grimly. “You see if you can get through to her your end.”

“Looks like my audience with the Councillor will have to wait.” Kaidan commented, and despite herself, Shepard smiled.

“And yet somehow you don’t seem too broken up about it.” She glanced to him, noticing a smile playing on his lips.

When they reached the core, Shepard saw that the door was sealed, with Engineer Adams wearing a mask and an oxygen canister on his belt, extinguisher at the ready. The sight of the red cylinder made her blood run cold.

“Adams, do we have a fire situation?” The Commander asked, her tone serious.

“Automated systems have the fire contained in the Core.” Adams reassured her. “It should be safe to enter when you’re ready.”

“Hand me a mask.” Shepard’s tone was even, but her heart quickened as she fastened the breathing gear over her mouth and nose, seeing Kaidan doing the same with another set. His eyes were pained as he saw her run her fingers down the tubing connecting the mask to the oxygen, searching for the slightest leak.

“Shall we, gentlemen?” She asked, Adams and Kaidan nodding in assent before she opened the door.

A cloud of smoke billowed out towards them, causing the oxygen canisters to activate, but the extinguishers had done their job, with only a couple of visible tongues of flame remaining that Adams quickly smothered with jets of carbon dioxide.

Shepard noted that the lights of the AI core were out, and she couldn’t hear any of the whirring of the servers or databanks, nor could she see through the smoke to the very back of the core. Aside from their breathing and the crackling of fire, it was unnervingly quiet.

“EDI.” She spoke, Adams moving over to the terminal nearby. “EDI, talk to me.”

In that moment, the blue lights of the Core came to life, as did the whirring of rebooting servers, and an orange light appeared through the smoke. Kaidan closed ranks with Shepard, his biotics activating and ready to defend her and Adams. She tried to ignore the feeling of them close to her skin, gooseflesh erupting over her arms, but she couldn’t ignore the fact they seemed brighter than she remembered, and crackled more violently, almost like blue flames.

The orange light got closer, and eventually revealed itself to be a strip of light in front of the eyes of the synthetic they’d fought on Mars, now cleaned up and almost new, and with EDI’s voice coming from it:

“Are there any particular topics you’d like to discuss, Shepard?”

Kaidan hesitated, and the Commander rested a hand on his shoulder, trying to ignore the spike of heat through went through her sternum at the ‘bite’ his biotics had against her.

“EDI? You’re in Doctor Eva’s body,” she said.

“Not all of me, but I have control of it.” EDI replied, which is when Shepard squeezed Kaidan’s shoulder to make him stand down, his biotics fading like fog in a breeze.

It turned out that Shepard’s fears about Eva suddenly springing awake were not entirely unfounded; EDI had triggered a trap as she searched for more details on the Prothean device, causing Eva to reactivate and try to attack, causing the fire and the Normandy to act strangely. EDI had retaliated by purging the bot and taking control of it. She also revealed that she could come on missions with Shepard, if the Commander desired it, since she now had a platform that wasn’t a gigantic starship.

Akeelah had conceded it was a good idea, but told her not to frighten the crew like that again, to make sure there were no more traps in the bot, and to let the crew know that the once Doctor Eva was now her, so she didn’t get shot or worse. Kaidan had wryly commented about talking to Udina, and that was the end of that.

Half an hour later and her ship round done, Shepard opened the door to the Starboard Observation Deck, greeted by the vast expanse of stars outside the large window. She stepped into the room, noting that the last time she’d been in this room, it’d had been to talk to the asari justicar Samara before the Commander had given herself up to the Alliance. Of all the places to take as his own, it made sense that the Major would choose the peace and serenity here. _And the stars…_

“Hey, Shepard.” Kaidan said, and she turned to see him sitting on one of the couches in the room, looking up at her.

“Hey Kaidan.” She couldn’t help the smile that came to her lips as she looked at him, her traitorous heart fluttering. _Not lovers any more, remember?_ “What did Udina want?” She asked, deciding to sit on the same couch he was, but at a reasonable distance.

Kaidan looked away for a moment, before he said;

“He’s thinking about making me a Spectre.”

Shepard blinked.

“And you’re definitely considering it, right?” She said.

“Yeah, I am. It’s a big honour, a huge responsibility. Just need to be sure.” He replied, nodding.

“Of course. But I think you should take it.” Shepard said. “You’re perfect for the job. I could sense it on Eden Prime.”

“That means a lot.” Kaidan ducked his head. “Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.”

A silence settled between them for a few moments, just enough to be awkward, before Kaidan shifted on to the couch to face her properly.

“So I want to make sure,” he began, “after Horizon, after what I said on Mars. You and me…we’re good?”

Shepard tried not to the frown at the question, not really sure what he was trying to ask her.

“We’ve been through hell together, had each other’s backs. That kind of bond is hard to break,” she said, assuming he meant it about their work, despite what a little voice was telling her.

“But not just that.” Kaidan said. “You were- are, my commander, sure. But you listened too. When I told you about how Rahna broke my heart, you didn’t judge me. You knew I needed that…” He closed his eyes. “We went through Ash’s death together…”

“Yeah…” The soldier saddened at just the thought of the spirited woman, her best friend. “We did.” Who died half because Shepard couldn’t save her, and half because of her love for the biotic.

“So, what do you say?” Kaidan puffed out a sigh. “Are we good?”

Akeelah smiled.

“Yeah, we’re good. You know, it’s great having you on the Normandy again. Like it really feels like, like…” She fought for a word that wasn’t ‘home’. “Like it’s the ‘proper’ Normandy now, you know?”

Kaidan nodded.

“Does have that feel to it.” He agreed.

Akeelah took a steeling breath. _Okay, let’s do it and get it over with._

“Kaidan, are we going to be able to get past what happened on Horizon?” His brows furrowed in confusion at her question. “Not as ‘us’ as people, but _us_ …as in, well, this.” She waved a hand between them, catching the words she really wanted to say between her teeth, and feeling them cut into her gums like glass.

The sentinel sighed, leaning forward to rest his elbows on his thighs.

“I’d like to, Shepard,” he said. “As friends, as…more than friends.” Her heart tripped a beat. “I mean, I don’t know. I just like having you in my life.”

“So how do we fix it?” The words were out of her mouth before her brain was up, and she bit her lip hard, cursing her eagerness. _It’s been two years for him, you dolt. You can’t expect him to pick up from where he left off. He mourned you, for Christ’s sake!_

The biotic considered his words before her spoke.

“Maybe you should know that I’m not seeing anyone…and I still care.”

Shepard thought back to the anxiety in his eyes when he checked her over on Menae, and the way his biotics burned fiercely when he thought he was facing down Doctor Eva again. Hope began to kindle in her heart.

“Kaidan…” She began uncertainly.

“Hey, look.” He interrupted. “There’s a war on…and maybe you and me’ll never happen, but I needed you to know that. ‘Cause that’s how we’ll get past Horizon.”

Shepard shifted on the couch, warring with herself. His comment seemed too final but also too weak, enough that she felt the need to push the subject. But at the same time, she didn’t want to pick at him for it. The fact he still cared about her was a joyous reveal in itself; she shouldn’t try to push him for more. And yet…

“You know,” he said, “talking like this, reminds me how much I like you.” He smiled, one that made the corners of his eyes crinkle. “We’re good together.”

 _I love you._ Akeelah didn’t say.

“We are?” She said instead.

“Yeah.” He nodded. “You know, I’m not sure I’ve been wrong about Cerberus…but I was wrong about you.”

To hear those words made her heart warm even more, and relief suffused her in the knowledge that Kaidan was no longer blaming her about Cerberus. But they weren’t out of the woods yet…

“You’ve not been wrong about Cerberus.” Shepard murmured, shifting again.

Kaidan looked at her questioningly, before his eyes flicked down to her hands, clasped on her lap.

“Shepard…what happened here?” He asked, gesturing to the knotted scars criss-crossing her right hand knuckles.

The bottom fell out of Shepard’s stomach. She knew she would’ve had to tell him about those at some point, but not so soon. She swallowed hard, rubbing the marks self-consciously as she tried to summon the words to explain.

“Kaidan, I…” She crossed her legs. “After our fight on Horizon, I was…I just…” She couldn’t look at him, wringing her hands. “I punched a glass case and broke it. Chakwas did her best to heal the wounds, but they scarred anyway.”

“Shepard…” Something in his voice made her look back at him, his expression one of both shock and guilt, staring at the scars that were partially hidden under her other hand. She wondered if he was imagining how it went down, the fragments of glass piercing her hand, the red blood oozing from the wounds, the pain…Her knuckles ached at the memory. “I’m so sorry Shepard, I didn’t mean-“

“Kaidan-“

“Seeing you alive sent me spinning.” The biotic said, eyes glimmering with held back tears. “I know I handled it badly but…” His voice caught, and he had to swallow to keep going. “I never meant to hurt you. Akeelah, I-“

“It’s not your fault, Kaidan.” She interrupted. “What you said hurt, but…You didn’t force me to hurt myself. That’s all me, I should’ve just punched things that weren’t fragile and wouldn’t break, or just screamed, I dunno…”

Kaidan shook his head.

“I should own this, Shepard.” He lifted a hand when she attempted to speak. “I said bad things, hurtful things to you, for little reason other than I was angry at you. At Cerberus.” He sighed. “I got your message. Both of them.” Shepard’s eyes widened. “The reply to my letter. A-And the code, the seeker swarm formula.” He ran his hand through his hair, now unable to look at her. “It hurt to listen to, your reply. I knew…I knew then it was you. Really you. That you were right.” He rubbed his face, pinching the bridge of his nose. “I regret everything I said to you. It was unfair.” He looked at her properly. “I’m sorry. For all of it. Could you ever forgive me?”

The lump in Akeelah’s throat was too large to speak around at first, so she just nodded.

“Yes. Yes, I can. But…” She swallowed hard. “But you shouldn’t blame yourself for everything. Because you were right too, in the end.” She ran a hand through her hair. “I wanted to tell you in my message, but Cerberus had bugs planted everywhere in the ship, and I didn’t want you to get hurt…” She wrung her hands. “On Horizon, and before I met you there, I trusted Cerberus was doing the right thing, doing what the Alliance couldn’t and didn’t want to do. I…believed them.” She swallowed back the bile creeping up her throat. “Kahoku, those colonies, the rachni…I knew, but I thought, maybe…”

“What changed?” Kaidan prompted gently.

“He did it on purpose. The Illusive Man. I don’t know how, but he knew we were…close.” The sentinel shifted uncomfortably. “So he thought what better way to trap the Collectors than to bait it with someone close to me.” She heard his sharp intake of breath. “And he told me as such right to my face when I got back. Talked about you as if you were nothing more than a piece of meat, like a tool he could use to get me and the Collectors in the same place.” The soldier clenched her fists, pulling the scars on her knuckles taunt. “You could have, could have been taken, and been…been…” She shook her head, seeing the horrible sight flash in her mind as she closed her eyes, unable and unwilling to finish her sentence. “But he didn’t care. I was his prized, expensive tool, to hell with what I wanted.”

Shepard sighed, looking down at the floor and his boots.

“I was so angry with myself. Because of course you were right, right all along, and I’d just, dismissed you, thought you were being paranoid and stubborn, and then to find out…” She squeezed her eyes shut as tears began to burn at them. “I lost control. I attacked things, anything that wasn’t living. I punched the case, thinking it would resist.” Her fists uncurled, and she hoped they weren’t shaking. “It didn’t. I don’t remember much after that. I was crying, and there was blood everywhere…I think EDI was saying something, then Garrus took me to the med bay.” She shook her head, sniffing wetly.

“Akeelah…” She heard Kaidan shift closer, and then his warm hands engulfed hers, making her heart trip a beat and a tear fall free of her eyes, splashing onto her trousers.

“I’m sorry.” She mumbled. “I shouldn’t be burdening you with this.”

“It’s fine, Shepard.” He rumbled deeply, and she had to clench her teeth to stop blurting out anything stupid. “Look at me, please?”

The gentleness of his request had her moving almost before he’d finished speaking, greeted by warm brown eyes and an equally warm smile.

“Akeelah, you did the right thing. If it weren’t for you, there would be no-one left on Horizon. Anderson knew that. I did, even if I chose not to believe it at the time.” He sighed softly. “I’m so sorry. I-“

“It’s alright, Kaidan.” The Commander said, scooting closer so their knees were millimetres from touching. “I understand. People just don’t come back. You had every right to be suspicious.”

“I know, I just…” Kaidan shook his head. “I can’t believe you’re here. That Cerberus actually managed to bring you back.” He squeezed his hands around hers. “The one thing I wished for in my darkest time, and it came true.” A half-hearted, cynical laugh. “Not very grateful, was I? Given a second chance and I shot it down.”

 _A second chance? Is he, did he mean, maybe…?_ Akeelah was about to open her mouth and ask what he meant by that, when Joker’s voice startled them apart.

“Commander, we’re coming up to the rendezvous for the summit.” The pilot stated. “ETA is ten minutes if you want to smarten yourself up.”

“Thanks Joker.” Shepard replied, trying to dampen down her annoyance that her helmsman had the uncanny knack of interrupting her and Kaidan at key moments. At least this time it was accidental. Probably.

“Well, I guess you better go then.” Kaidan said, clasping his hands together as if he didn’t really know where to put them. A ghost of a smile flickered over Shepard’s lips as she remembered the last time he’d said that.

“I suppose so. Get myself into my dress blues and sort out my makeup,” she said, wiping her eyes and scowling at the black smears that resulted on her hands.

“I should get back to Udina too; he’s waiting for my answer.” Kaidan replied, getting to his feet. “I’ll let you know how it goes after the summit, Shepard.”

“Yeah.” She nodded, standing up as well. “Let’s just hope that this doesn’t start another war.”


	5. The Summit

“The krogan is in no position to make demands!” The salarian dalatrass declared.

“The krogan has a name: Urdnot Wrex.” The red crested krogan chief growled in reply.

Shepard was unsurprised that she’d walked into the middle of an argument, giving Victus a cursory nod as she took her position at the table opposite him. She was more than happy to see Wrex still in charge of the krogan, but a friendly reunion (and the inevitable teasing that she’d shown up in her dress blues) would have to wait.

“And I’m not just some junkyard varren you unleash whenever you’re in trouble.” Wrex continued. “I’ve got my own problems. Reaper scouts have arrived on Tuchanka. So why should I care if a few turians go extinct?” He sneered, Akeelah silently appreciating that at least he was upfront about his self-interest. _Unlike some people…_

“Trying to draw out negotiations will get you nowhere, Wrex.” Victus replied, not rising to the bait. “I have no time for it. Just tell us what you want.”

“I’ll tell you what I want.” Wrex leant forwards, looking directly at the dalatrass. “A cure for the genophage.”

“Absolutely not!” Was her outraged reply. “The genophage is non-negotiable!”

Shepard tried not to sigh, instead saying:

“Why are you so opposed to the idea, Dalatrass?”

“Because my people uplifted the krogan.” Was the salarian’s reply, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. “We know them best.”

“You mean you used us!” Wrex bellowed, banging the table with his fist. “To fight a war you couldn’t win! It wasn’t salarians, or the asari or even the turians that stopped the rachni. It was krogan blood that turned the tide!”

“And after that you ceased to be useful!” The Dalatrass replied. “The genophage was the only way to keep your ‘urges’ in check.”

Wrex glared at her, and Shepard realized that she was developing an intense dislike for the salarian.

“Dalatrass,” Victus spoke, “you may not like him, but Wrex is right. Insulting him won’t change that.”

“I won’t apologize for speaking the truth! We uplifted the krogan to do one thing: wage war. It’s all they know because it’s all we wanted them to know.”

“Then your people should have thought the matter through, shouldn’t they?” Shepard butted in, unable to keep quiet any longer. “Was it really a surprise the krogan revolted?”

“That’s precisely my point, Commander.” The Dalatrass said. “We made a rash decision. We turned to the krogan in desperation. It’s the same mistake you’re about to make today. No good can come from curing the genophage.”

“The krogan have paid for their mistake.” The soldier replied, glancing at Wrex, who was watching her intently. “The genophage has gone on long enough.”

“One thousand, four hundred and seventy-six years, if you’re keeping track.” The krogan said, the pain clear in his voice.

“It was a thousand years of peace, free from these brutes!” The Dalatrass barked, and Shepard was sure Wrex was about to flip the table before Victus yelled:

“Enough! Whether or not they deserve a cure is academic. It would take years to formulate one.”

“My information says otherwise.” Wrex said, Shepard’s ears pricking up. “A salarian scientist, Maelon, grew a conscience. He was on my planet, testing a cure on our females.”

“I remember.” Shepard said, remembering the body bags laid out on grimy medical cots. “His methods were barbaric, killed them.”

“But what you didn’t know is that other females survived his experiments.” The Commander’s eyes widened, her full attention on the krogan chief. “So the dalatrass here sent in a team to clean up the whole mess – and to take them prisoner.” Wrex activated his omnitool, bringing up a vid screen that played footage of a dingy, dark lab, the person filming furtively scuttling towards a glass wall, behind which was the large form of a krogan in restraints.

“Where did you get this?” The Dalatrass demanded. “It could be a fabrication!”

“Don’t insult me!” Wrex retorted, his pupils contracting into slits. “Those are my people! They’re immune to the genophage, and you’re going to give them back!”

Victus rounded on her.

“Dalatrass, is this true?”

“How will curing the genophage benefit my people?” Was her reply, and that was the straw that broke the Commander’s back.

“How long do you think you and your people will last alone against the Reapers, Dalatrass?” Shepard asked, drawing herself up to her full height, her green eyes ablaze. “Because if you don’t help, that’s how you’ll end up!”

“And I’ll be the last friendly turian you’ll ever see.” Victus added, a dangerous cadence to his voice.

“What’s it to be?” Shepard spoke.

The Dalatrass said nothing for a moment.

“…The females are being kept at one of our STG bases on Sur’kesh,” she said, but when Shepard nodded, relaxing her stance, the salarian added: “But I warn you, Commander! The consequences of this will be-“

“They will be nothing compared to what will happen when the Reapers win!” Shepard’s shout silenced her. “There will be no-one but husks left to argue with when they are finished with us.”

The Dalatrass seemed rebuffed, but otherwise unmoved. The Commander would have respected her fortitude if she wasn’t trying to restrain herself from saying worse things. 

“You’re not setting foot on Sur’kesh.” The Dalatrass said coldly. “This will take time to-“

“It happens now.” Victus interrupted, seemingly just as tired with the argument as Shepard was. “As a Council Spectre, Shepard can oversee the exchange.”

“And we’re going now.” The Commander declared, turning on her heel, and noticing Kaidan was hovering in the shadows, waiting for his chance to leave past the conference room. As she strode out of the room, he joined her with his head down, pretending just to be a passing crew member.

“I won’t forget this, Commander!” The Dalatrass cried at their retreating backs. “A bully has few friends when she needs them most!”

“Takes one to know one, doesn’t it?” Shepard muttered under her breath as they passed the checkpoint, the Major snorting with amusement. “Joker! Set a course of Sur’kesh! I need to get out of these blues.”

“Aye aye Commander!” The pilot replied.

“Would you do me a favour, Major?” Akeelah asked, striding to the elevator with the biotic on her heels.

“Of course, Commander. What is it?” He asked.

“Please stop me from punching the salarian Dalatrass in the face.”

Kaidan barked out a laugh, the sound making her grin as they entered the lift together.

“I’ll do my best,” he said. “Or at least, hold you back long enough for Wrex to do it for you.”

“Oh God.” She shook her head, tapping the key for Deck One. “So, what’s the verdict?”

“I accepted it.” Kaidan said, a half smile on his lips.

“Spectre Kaidan Alenko.” Shepard rolled the words in her mouth. “That’s a big deal.”

“Only the second human Spectre. It’s humbling,” he said. “Udina thinks they might have a pretty big ceremony, even with the war. He says a celebration will give folks back home something hopeful to latch onto.”

“Yeah.” Shepard nodded. “We’re gonna need stuff like that to get through this.” She smirked. “So, you ready to take on the responsibility of being the Second Human Spectre?”

He chuckled.

“You set the bar pretty high, but I’ll do my best.”

“No doubt of that.” The elevator doors opened at the top floor, and they stepped out, Kaidan eyeing the door.

“Wait, you get a whole floor to yourself?” He asked, his eyebrows raised.

“Yeah. They forgot the Normandy was originally a warship, and decided I would want civilian comforts instead.” Shepard explained.

“Did you?”

“Well…I’m not going to refuse them. Even if they put a fish tank in there.”

“I’m sorry, a what?” Kaidan exclaimed, only just managing not to laugh.

“A fish tank, yes.” Shepard nodded. “Silly, but I like it. The cabin’s so big that it feels…lonely by myself.”

“And the fish make you feel better?” He asked, watching her curiously.

“Yeah. They do.”

A silence fell between them for a moment or two.

“A-Anyway, I should go.” Kaidan said. “Let you, uh, get changed in peace…” He stepped back, what seemed like a blush beginning on his cheeks.

“Wait, Kaidan.” Akeelah said, making him pause. “Back downstairs, you said you got a second chance, but then you shot it down. What did you mean by that?” _Shepard, you can’t just ask him that!_

The biotic blinked owlishly at her, and she definitely sure he was blushing now, with how dark his skin had become. Her mind screamed that she’d made a stupid mistake, but it was too late to turn back now.

“I, um, I mean…” He rubbed the back of his neck, puffing out a sigh. “I meant I got a second chance to be with you, to, to…” He swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing with the motion. “To tell you how I feel about you.” He shook his head. “But I-I…nevermind. You, _we’ve_ got stuff to do-“

“Kaidan, I love you.” Shepard blurted out, the sentinel freezing in his tracks. “I loved you ever since the first Normandy, ever since you said I made you feel human, when we were in the orchard that night under the full moon.” She felt hot tears burning at her eyes, but she no longer cared now that the dam had burst and it was all pouring out. “I died regretting never telling you, I came back wondering where you were, and I was so happy to see you alive and safe on Horizon…” A shuddery breath. “I missed you all the time, but I knew you’d moved on and I tried…tried to move on too, but it’s just so…fresh…” She drew in a deep, wobbly breath, wiping her eyes and smearing her mascara. “God, I’m so sorry Kaidan, I don’t mean to burden you with this, I’m so sorry, I shouldn’t’ve-“

“You remember the orchard.” The biotic spoke, his brown eyes wide and bright as he stepped towards her.

“Of course.” The soldier said. “How could I not? You said we’d might not get the chance again, with the moon and the warmth…You didn’t want me to get hurt by the twigs on the ground, but I told you I could handle it, and you laughed and called me stubborn…You were so beautiful in the light, I almost told you then and there, but, but I was scared I’d ruin everything for you…”

“Akeelah…” Kaidan breathed. “I’m the luckiest man in the galaxy. Never thought…” He shook his head. “I love you too, Akeelah. I always have.” He stepped towards her again, taking her hands in his. “I thought I’d driven you away for good, what with Horizon and Mars…”

“I thought…you would have moved on, I didn’t…I didn’t want to uproot your new life…”

“You’re a hard woman to forget, Akeelah.” Kaidan smiled, one that reached his eyes. “Even if you scare me to death playing chicken with a brute.”

She laughed then, the sadness broken.

“Hey, that’s what I do. You know that.”

“Yeah,” he nodded. “I do.”

“We still need to talk about a few things.” Shepard said. “Like my phoenix tattoo, a-and a couple of other things-“

“We’ll get there.” The sentinel replied, squeezing her hands. “Even if the galaxy is falling down around our ears.”

Shepard chuckled.

“Just our luck, right?”

“Definitely.” He grinned, making her heart skip a beat. “Anyway, I’ve taken up enough of your time for now, Commander. There’ll be time for personal debriefings later.” He began to move away when Shepard cried;

“Hold it, Major!” She seized his shirt in a fistful, pulling him down into a powerful kiss that was as passionate as it was short, leaving the biotic looking a little dazed after he was released.

“Whoa…” He murmured eloquently, Shepard chuckling.

“Consider that a good luck kiss, Major.” She grinned. “Now get down to the shuttle bay and suit up. We have some krogan to save!”

“Aye aye ma’am!” He saluted, and Shepard couldn’t wipe the smile off her face with a Thanix cannon as she watched him leave.

_Save the last hope for the krogan, cure the genophage and save the universe from the Reapers? I think we can do that._


End file.
